05-21-2010, 05:09 PM
First a disclaimer: I really like these Peco turnouts, so I'm in no way commenting negatively on their performance. I understand that a manufacturer can't possibly make a product that will work with every product 100% of the time. That said, I just to everything to stay on the tracks and will work to achieve that goal.
And some additional information...The cars that have been derailing are some auto racks from Intermountain, and two new Fox Valley Models ES44AC engines. When I gently moved the engine, I noticed an extremely small height difference mainline rails and the turnout. The front bottom edge of the fuel tank would hit that spot square and would stop dead if moving slow enough, so some quick filing solved that problem. But still, the cars and some engines would derail or fail to align with the correct track. So, the first thing I tried today was to angle the edges of the frogs on all the turnouts. I tried to shave off approximately 1/16th an inch at a 60 degree angle. On almost every turnout, this helped the wheels align correctly.
And some additional information...The cars that have been derailing are some auto racks from Intermountain, and two new Fox Valley Models ES44AC engines. When I gently moved the engine, I noticed an extremely small height difference mainline rails and the turnout. The front bottom edge of the fuel tank would hit that spot square and would stop dead if moving slow enough, so some quick filing solved that problem. But still, the cars and some engines would derail or fail to align with the correct track. So, the first thing I tried today was to angle the edges of the frogs on all the turnouts. I tried to shave off approximately 1/16th an inch at a 60 degree angle. On almost every turnout, this helped the wheels align correctly.
Mark
Citation Latitude Captain
--and--
Lt Colonel, USAF (Retired)
Citation Latitude Captain
--and--
Lt Colonel, USAF (Retired)